


After Midnight

by fmpsimon



Category: Free!
Genre: College, Fluff, M/M, One Shot, Straight up fluff, University
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-26
Updated: 2017-03-26
Packaged: 2018-10-11 07:01:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10458240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fmpsimon/pseuds/fmpsimon
Summary: Rei's night of studying doesn't go exactly as planned when he gets an unexpected phone call from Nagisa.





	

            Rei pinched his nose and closed his eyes, trying to reinvigorate his mind for another round of studying.  He had taken his break, had a snack, but now it was time to get back to work.  It didn’t matter that it was after midnight.  He had barely read a paragraph when his phone started to buzz loudly, vibrating against the desk.  With a small sigh, he glanced down at it.  A smiley face.  Nagisa.  He shook his head, a smile on his lips, and turned back to his studies.  So far, the university was a breeze, but that didn't mean he didn't have a mountain of homework and studying each night.  He scribbled some notes down only to be distracted again by his vibrating phone.  He unlocked it while it continued to signal more text messages coming in.  "Nagisa, come on," he muttered under his breath.

 

_24:22    Rei_

_24:22    Rei_

_24:23    Are you there??_

_24:23    It's me Nagisa_

_24:23    :)_

_24:24    Yes.  What is it?_

_24:24    Are you home??_

_24:24    Yes...studying..._

 

            He jumped a little when his phone started playing its ringtone.  It was one Rei had set up especially for Nagisa—it was loud, boisterous, upbeat, a little wild for his tastes, but extremely fitting for his spunky friend.  He slammed his pencil on the desk and put the phone to his ear.  "What?!"

            "Oh, Rei!  You answered!" came Nagisa's bubbly voice.  "I had to text you to make sure you were around."  He paused.  "You're not annoyed, are you?"

            "Why would you say that?" Rei said through gritted teeth, pushing his glasses up his nose.

            "'Cause I can hear you breathing through the phone," Nagisa said with a laugh.  "Your nose is whistling!"  Rei froze, embarrassed.  "Sorry to bug you.  It's just...I haven't heard from you in a while."

            "We text," Rei pointed out, tapping his pencil on his notepad.  That much was true, but it was also true that they hadn't spoken for a few weeks.  He had been so busy and he had just assumed that his best friend had been as well.

            "Yeah, I guess, but...it's not the same as talking to you."  Nagisa sounded sad and it was frankly out of character for him.  Since Rei had met him, he had rarely been down.  He leaned back in his chair.  This was not going to be a quick conversation.  "I guess I just miss you."

            "I miss you too, Nagisa," he said.

            "Really?!" Nagisa said excitedly.  "Or are you just saying that so you don't have to talk to me?"  Now he was pouting.  Rei smiled and felt blush creep onto his cheeks.

            "It's true," he said.  "I've been so busy with my studies that I haven't had the time to join any of the clubs here.  And there are hundreds.  There's actually a swimming club for people who don't swim!  Swimming Enthusiasts or something," he said thoughtfully.

            Nagisa laughed.  "Well, you don't need that anymore!  Your butterfly stroke is amazing!"

            "The product of many hours of practice," Rei said smugly.  He paused, tracing the characters in his text book.  "Don't take this the wrong way, Nagisa, but I'm actually happy that you miss me and that you're feeling a little lonely.  You're so accepting and social that I thought you'd be friends with everyone by now.  I thought...you might have found a new Rei...if that makes sense."  He was blushing even harder now.  He didn't even know why he was saying this now, and, so far, Nagisa had kept quiet.  "I'm sorry," he said at length.  "That must sound incredibly selfish to you."

            "No, it doesn't!" Nagisa replied eagerly.  "It means you really _do_ miss me!"

            "I told you I do," Rei repeated, smiling to himself.

            "So, when are you coming home to visit?"  Nagisa's voice was so bubbly and excited—it was intoxicating, but it also made him feel sad.  They had been so close in high school, and Rei had known that it would be different being apart, but he hadn’t imagined the hole it would leave in his life.

            Rei adjusted his glasses again.  "Regrettably, not until the winter break."

            "Oh," Nagisa said, shrinking.  "Wait!  I have a long weekend coming up!  I'll come see you!  C'mon, Rei, whaddaya think?"

            "I'm fine with it," Rei answered honestly.  "But where are you going to stay?"

            "With you, of course."  Rei's breath caught in his throat.  Nagisa?  Stay with him?  He whirled around, taking in his entire apartment.  Tiny kitchen, limited seating, and only one bed.  "Rei?  Rei, are you still there?"

            "Yes, yes, of course I am," he replied nervously, chewing on his lip.

            "Don't you want me to come?"  Rei wasn't sure how to answer.  He wanted to see Nagisa—desperately—but…

            "Of course I do," he said finally.  His hands felt sweaty and he clutched the phone even more tightly.  "I want to see you more than anything.  There isn't a day that goes by that I don't think about you and wish you were by my side."

            "Rei," Nagisa breathed.

            "And, yes, I _am_ serious!" he said, flustered, anticipating the question before it had even left Nagisa's lips.  There was silence on the other end and Rei started to wonder if they had been disconnected.  "Nagisa?"

            "I think I can tell you why I really called now," Nagisa said calmly, but Rei could hear the grin through the phone.

            Rei turned as he heard a knock at his door.  "What?  Nagisa…?" he whispered in disbelief.

            "I'm kinda outside your door right now."  He rapped again, giggling.

            Dropping the phone, Rei rushed to the door and yanked it open.  Exactly as he said, Nagisa was standing before him, a sheepish smile on his face.  He chuckled, giving a small wave.  Rei flung his arms around him, hugging him more tightly than he had ever hugged anyone before.  Nagisa was so surprised that it took him a moment to drop his bags and hug Rei back.  "Wow, you really _did_ miss me," Nagisa said softly.

            "I did," Rei choked, as tears blotted Nagisa's jacket.

            "Don't cry, Rei," Nagisa said, his own voice trembling.

            Rei clutched fistfuls of Nagisa's jacket in his hands.  "I can't help it!" he wailed.

            "'Cause if you cry, then I'm gonna…"  It was too late.  Tears spilled out of Nagisa's eyes and the sound of his cries became muffled in Rei's sweater.

            "Ryugazaki!" came a booming voice from across the hall.  Rei looked up, his eyes wide and his glasses smudged with tears.  "Keep it down, would you?"

            "Yes, sir!  Apologies!"  Rei held onto Nagisa's shoulders, keeping him just under arm's length, as he watched his neighbor retreat back into his apartment.  He sighed in relief when the door finally closed.  "We'd better go inside."

            Nagisa nodded eagerly as he wiped his eyes, then grabbed his bags.  "Wow, your place is really...clean," he said as the door closed behind him.

            Rei cocked his head, unsure if that was a compliment or not.  "Uh, thank you?"  He watched his friend walk around the apartment, touching the few knickknacks he had, running his fingers along the spines of his text books.  He was taking it all in.  "How did you get in, anyway?  The front door is locked."

            "Someone let me in," Nagisa said, shrugging.  "At first, when I told them I was there to see you, nobody believed me.  They said there was no _way_ you would have any visitors, especially this late.  So, then I just lied and said I forgot my key."  He turned around, grinning.  "That worked like a charm."

            Rei crossed his arms.  "You could have just asked me.  I would have come down and let you in."

            "Yeah, but that would've ruined the surprise!" Nagisa said.  He stepped closer until he was inches from Rei's face.  "Hey, your glasses are really dirty.  How can you even see?"

            "Oh!"  Rei immediately removed his glasses and began cleaning them with his handkerchief, his cheeks flushed.

            Nagisa sat down on the bed, bouncing a little.  "Is it really true you never have anyone over?" he asked, swinging his legs up and crossing them underneath him.  "Aren't you making friends?"

            Rei replaced his glasses and neatly folded his handkerchief back up.  "I suppose," he shrugged.  "I haven't had much time for a social life.  And it's a big university in a big city."  He paused, looking down.  "It's a little overwhelming to be honest."

            "Why don't you join the swim team?  I bet you'd make tons of friends there!" Nagisa said excitedly.

            Rei shook his head, smiling slightly.  "I've thought about it.  But I'm not sure I would make the cut."

            Nagisa crossed his arms.  There was that defiant look again.  "Come _on_ , our team made it to Nationals two years in a row!  Of _course_ you'd make it!"

            With a shrug, Rei murmured, "Maybe."  He peered at his friend.  "Have _you_ joined the swim team?"

            Nagisa sighed.  "My school doesn't have one, so I've just been swimming at the center when I can."

            Rei frowned.  He hated seeing Nagisa down.  What could he do to cheer him up?  "How about we go swimming tomorrow?"

            Nagisa's eyes lit up.  "Yeah, that'd be awesome!"  He jumped up and launched into Rei's arms.  "This is going to be a blast!"

            "Right!  Well, I say we make it a morning swim—really get our blood flowing—then I can show you around."  Nagisa nodded in approval.  "Okay, then, time for bed."

            Nagisa blinked.  "Bed?  Already?" he whined.  Rei ignored him and went to the bathroom to change and brush his teeth.  When he came back, his visitor was curled up in a sleeping bag on the floor, fast asleep.  He smiled and, taking care not to step on him, turned off the lights and got into his own bed.

            It took him longer than usual to get to sleep; it seemed he was tossing and turning every few minutes.  When he finally gave in and opened his eyes, he realized that he was giddy with excitement, nervous and happy all at the same time, just like he felt before a tournament.  Only there was no tournament, there was only Nagisa, a few feet from him, sleeping on the floor.

            "Rei?" he heard a soft voice call out.

            "Hm?"

            "Your floor's not very comfortable."  Nagisa pushed himself up.  "Can I sleep with you?"  Rei bit his lip, thinking it over.  He wasn't opposed to the idea of being closer to Nagisa, but on the other hand, there were parts of his body he couldn't exactly control that might...embarrass him.  "C'mon, I'm not gonna get any sleep down here, and then you're gonna drag me out of bed before sunrise!  Please, just one night!  I promise, I won't do anything weird!"

            Rei furrowed his brow.  Weird?  Like what?  He pushed the distracting thoughts from his mind and made room.  "All right.  But it's going to be a tight squeeze.  This bed isn't exactly made for two people."

            Nagisa didn't waste any time; he was out of the sleeping bag and into the bed in record time.  "Cozy," he said, and Rei blushed, realizing how close they were.  Nagisa smiled.  "You're always blushing, Rei.  What's with you?"

            "Ehh, nothing," Rei said nervously.  He bit his lip; he was getting hard just having Nagisa close to him.  This was exactly what he was afraid of.

            "Hey, Rei," Nagisa said, moving even closer, "do you have a crush on me?"

            "A what?!" he shot back, scandalized.  He couldn't see his friend very well without his glasses, but he could make out the crooked smile on his face.

            "It's okay if you do," Nagisa said.  Then it was his turn to blush and look away.  "Because I have a crush on you too."

            "Crush?"  Rei was still stuck on that word.  "Crushes are for little boys and girls in primary school!  I would never use that word to describe _my_ feelings!"

            "Fine, then what _would_ you call it?" Nagisa said, a grin still plastered to his face.

            Rei sat up, rubbing his chin as he thought.  "Well, judging from my age, emotional sophistication, and the amount of time we've known each other...plus mutual respect, many shared experiences, including time on a swim team together where we were able to bond not only as friends, but as brothers as well—I'd call it...I'd call it love."

            Nagisa's jaw dropped.  "How can you be so technical about that?  How can you just say it like you're rattling off what you had for breakfast?"  His hands were on Rei's shoulders, shaking him every few words.  "This is insane!  You're supposed to kiss and go on dates before you say that kind of thing!"  His eyes were desperate, but Rei just smiled.

            Rei was remarkably calm for having just bared his soul.  He even surprised himself, but maybe it was the realization that this was indeed how he felt about Nagisa.  To have something to call it somehow settled his spirit, made his mind less restless.  "It's okay if you can't say it back.  You shouldn't say it, not until you really mean it."

            "I do like you, Rei," Nagisa said, sitting up now.  "But...I can't just do this stuff all upside down and inside out, okay?"  Rei shrugged and he nodded back.  "Right!  Step one: kissing!"  Nagisa grabbed Rei, yelping, by the back of the neck and pulled him close.  It was wet and sloppy and so...not beautiful, but...it did feel pretty good to have those arms wrapped around him and those lips pressed against his.  "I guess we need more practice," Nagisa said breathlessly.

            Rei laughed softly.  "I think you're right.  But for now, we should get some sleep.  We have an early morning."

            Nagisa's face fell.  "Wait, we're still doing that?!"

            "Of course," Rei replied, smiling.

            Nagisa chewed on his lip for a moment, thinking.  "Well, then that will be our first date!" he decided with a grin.

            "Doing laps at a pool?"  Despite trying his best, Rei couldn't mask the disappointment in his voice.  Nagisa nodded.  "Wouldn't you rather have dinner together?"

            Nagisa put his hands on Rei's shoulders as if to fend him off.  "Hold, on, mister, not on a first date!"

            "Nagisa, you realize how ludicrous this sounds when we're _sleeping_ together?"  Rei pressed his hand into his forehead, frustrated.

            "Just humor me, okay?"  Rei felt a soft pair of lips on his hand and he dropped it, blinking at the blonde.  "Good night, Rei."

            He relaxed into his pillow, unable to keep the smile off his own face.  "Good night, Nagisa."


End file.
